MINSK, November 25. /TASS/. The Belarusian opposition will not succeed in achieving its political goals by playing the so-called Russia card, Russian Ambassador to Minsk Dmitry Mezentsev told reporters on Wednesday.
"Some of the protest organizers seek to stage political shows in Belarus and play ‘the Russian card’ in an attempt to raise tensions between Russia and Belarus but their attempts will lead nowhere," he pointed out. "Russia’s attitude towards our fraternal nation, Belarus, does not change depending on the steps that Minsk’s Western partners take in certain situations. Our position is based on allied relations that are time-tested and forward-looking," the envoy added. He stressed that "Russian President Vladimir Putin pursues a consistent policy aimed at supporting the entire Belarusian people." "If someone believes that Western capitals will be able to cut ties between us by imposing restrictions on Belarus, it means that they don’t understand the depth and scale of our cooperation," Mezentsev emphasized.
When commenting on the Belarus Democracy, Human Rights, and Sovereignty Act of 2020, passed by the US House of Representatives, he pointed out that it was "an attempt to pull Belarus away from Russia and break down the system of bilateral relations." "When such a step is taken by lawmakers from a country that has grievances regarding violations of democratic principles in various parts of the world, it breaks democratic traditions and violates international law," the Russian ambassador noted.
At the same time, Mezentsev highlighted the need for Russia and Belarus to boost political cooperation.
The US House of Representatives earlier passed a draft document entitled the Belarus Democracy, Human Rights, and Sovereignty Act of 2020, which provides for sanctions against officials of the Union State of Russia and Belarus. According to the document, the United States rejects "the results of the fraudulent August 9, 2020, presidential election in Belarus," supports "calls for new presidential and parliamentary elections, conducted in a manner that is free and fair according to OSCE standards and under the supervision of OSCE observers and independent domestic observers" and calls "for the immediate release without preconditions of all political prisoners in Belarus." The draft document will now be submitted to the US Senate.